Condor

This week, the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority announced a new seasonal service between San Diego and Frankfurt, Germany. The new flight – operated by Condor Airlines – will provide the only nonstop connection between San Diego and Continental Europe.

EDC and World Trade Center San Diego (WTCSD) worked in partnership with the San Diego Tourism Authority to support the efforts of the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority to bring Condor Airlines’ direct daily service to Frankfurt.

New international route service is a core priority of the newly relaunched WTCSD and EDC’s global competitiveness interests. Making the business case, the EDC and WTCSD team prepared a package of materials, including research related to economic ties between both Germany and San Diego, and a series of case studies of German-owned firms operating in the San Diego region and a compilation of San Diego-based companies operating in Germany.

Key economic figures include:

In 2015, Germany ranked as the 4th largest source of foreign employment in San Diego, with more than 4,368 jobs in San Diego tied to German-owned businesses.

German companies such as Taylormade (Adidas), Kontron and Siemens all have locations in San Diego.

Germany is a top destination for San Diego exports, especially in the machinery, electronics and precision instruments industries.

Over the last decade, German companies have invested more than 300 million in new projects in our region, making Germany one of our top three largest greenfield investors.

San Diego companies across diverse industries are targeting Germany, as seen with Stone Brewing Co.’s brewery in Berlin opening in late 2016.

Upon meeting with the Condor team, EDC prepared and delivered a presentation outlining the growing interests between Germany and San Diego. In the weeks following the presentation, EDC answered a series of follow up questions and requests from the Condor Airlines route planning division to help secure its commitment to San Diego.

“As one of San Diego’s top partners for exports and foreign investment, Germany is fast becoming one of our economy’s most important international markets,” said Mark Cafferty, president and CEO of San Diego Regional EDC. “Condor’s new direct flight will now link San Diego to one of Europe’s most important economic and cultural hubs.”

Condor will begin service in May 2017 with up to three weekly flights on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The route will operate on a Boeing 767-300ER aircraft and offer three classes of service: Business Class, Premium Class and Economy Class. Flights can now be booked online at http://www.condor.com/.